George f



( o Model.)

F. POLSOM.

SIGNAL STAFF.

No. 314,324. Patentd Mar; 24, 1885;

Wiiqasseg,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE F. FOLSOM, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO HENRY M.ESSELEN, OF SAME PLACE.

SIGNAL-STAFF.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 314,324, dated March24, 1885.

Application filed February 11, 1894. (N model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE F. FoLsoM, of Boston, county of Suffolk, andState of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Signal-Staffs,of which the following description, in connection with the accompanyingdrawing, is a specification, like letters on the drawing representinglike parts.

Thisinvention relates to asigual-staffadapted to be fixed in an uprightor inclined position and to support or carry a lantern or signal-flagfor'use on railways for the purpose of marking dangerous points alongthe road or for signaling or warning approaching trains. i5 Heretoforeit has been common to employ as a flag-support a rod or staff providedat its end with a metal point adapted to be driven into the ground orinto a tie; but such plan does not afford a sufficiently reliable holdfor 2 the staff. A staff of this kind is not used to support a lantern.

My invention has for its object the production of a signal-staffprovided with a foot adapted to engage the rail and maintain the 2staffin position to display the flag or lantern attached to it, andpreferably the staff will be inclined inward from the inner side of therail, the said foot being so constructed that it may be readily attachedto or detached from the rail.

The drawing shows in elevation my improved signal-staff attached to arail and supporting both a signal lantern and flag.

The rod or staff A, of any suitable length,

thickness, and material, may in practice be provided with a book, a, andstaple or screweye a, or any suitable equivalents therefor, whereby alantern and a flag, either or both, may be attached to the staff nearits point or 0 upper end and be supported thereby.

The rail-engaging foot B is herein shown as a curved piece of metalforming a hook, I), to hook over or engage the convexed edge of thetread c of the rail 0, the under side of the foot resting upon the topof the said rail. The foot 5 has, as herein shown, two eyes or sockets,b b",t0 receive the lower end of the staff A loosely,

a screw or pin, 6, being inserted into the staff between the said eyesor sockets, so that the staff has a limited amount of vertical play 0therein. In this instance the staff is free to rotate in the foot or tomove longitudinally therein the distance between said eyes or sockets bb, so that the lower end of the staff may be projected below the footwhen the latter is applied to the rail and assist in retaining the footin position thereon.

To remove the staff from the rail, it will be lifted in the eyes orsockets until the screw 6 strikes the upper socket, b, which will then 6cause the foot to rise with the staff.

I In practice the metal of the foot extended over the tread of the railwill be sufficiently thin to prevent throwing a car from the trackshould a wheel run over it.

I have herein shown a hooked foot; but I desire it to be understood thatI do not limit my invention to the particular shape of foot shown, asthe shape of the same may be variously modified without departing frommy in- 7o vention.

I claim- The foot or clamp 1), adapted to embrace the rail, providedwith the staff-receiving eyes I) I), combined with the signal-staff A,thelower end of which is passed entirely through said eyes to come incontact with the rail to assist in retaining the foot in place,substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEO. F. FOLSOM. \Vitnesses:

G. W. GREGORY, W. H. SIGsToN.

